Reed Sheppard starred for Kentucky. His family was there to see it. ‘It means everything.’

A couple of hours before his first game as a Kentucky basketball player, the kid who grew up rooting for the Wildcats and living among two UK basketball greats walked through the team hotel and did a double take.

Reed Sheppard spotted his father, Jeff Sheppard, and then he saw what Dad was wearing.

“It kind of surprised me,” the younger Sheppard said the following day, a few minutes after his star performance in Kentucky’s 93-69 victory over Canada at the GLOBL JAM. “It was really cool, though, being able to see him have that on. It was really, really cool.”

What was it that made Reed Sheppard stop and look twice?

The sight of his father wearing a white Kentucky jersey with the No. 15 on it. That’s the number Jeff wore for the Wildcats more than two decades ago, his career culminating in the 1998 national title and Final Four most outstanding player honors. And that’s the number that Reed was about to wear for the first time when the Cats hit the court in Toronto later that day.

The new Wildcat’s number switch — from his old No. 3, already taken by teammate Adou Thiero, to his new No. 15 — was a nod to his dad’s Kentucky career, he explained last week.

And Jeff was wearing it to support his son Wednesday, his first game as a Wildcat.

That UK basketball debut didn’t go quite according to plan.

Sheppard missed all four shots he took in Kentucky’s 81-73 victory over Germany on Wednesday.

In the postgame locker room, Coach John Calipari made Sheppard get up in front of the entire team and recite the following line: “I couldn’t make a shot.”

“Say it,” Calipari told him.

Sheppard said it.

“And he just smiled,” Calipari said, smiling himself as he described the scene.

Both coach and player knew that it wasn’t meant to be mean. It was meant to show the young freshman — playing his first game in an exhibition tournament just weeks after arriving on campus — that stuff like that will happen. What’s important when it does is to make an impact in other ways. And then turn the page.

It was clear from Calipari’s telling of it all Wednesday that he thought Sheppard did plenty right in his first game with Kentucky, and that he’d be just fine offensively moving forward.

Correct on both counts.

In Wednesday’s opener, Sheppard didn’t score, but he tied a team high with six assists and was all over the place defensively, tipping balls and getting steals that led to buckets for teammates.

The following night, the UK freshman showed a much wider range of his abilities on the court.

“Ooh, was he good today?” Calipari said afterward.

He sure was.

Given a second chance, it didn’t take long for Sheppard to score his first points in a Kentucky uniform. He hit a three-pointer midway through the first quarter. About 30 seconds later, he hit another one.

The second quarter provided even splashier highlights. First, a steal and two-handed dunk that gave UK a 15-point lead a few minutes before halftime. Then, with the clock ticking down toward the break, Sheppard flew in from nowhere with an emphatic block on a three-point attempt, collected the ball himself, sprinted downcourt and finished with another two-handed jam.

Sheppard finished with 14 points, four assists and four steals.

After his first three dropped, dad pumped both fists in the stands, and mom — former UK star Stacey Reed Sheppard — cheered on her son. By that highlight-reel sequence to end the half, everyone in blue and white was going crazy for the Kentucky kid.

“That’s just game preparation,” Reed Sheppard said afterward. “The coaches said, ‘27 can shoot,’ and I knew as soon as I helped and they swung it out that he was going to shoot it. So I just jumped and got lucky and hit it, blocked it. And then I was able to go down and dunk it.”

Luck had nothing to do with that one. It was smart basketball, pure and simple.

And if you ask around this UK program, “smart” is a word that keeps popping up whenever Sheppard’s name is mentioned.

Tre Mitchell is the oldest player on this young Kentucky team. He turns 23 later this year. He arrived in Lexington just a couple of weeks ago after a late transfer from West Virginia.

“I’m not gonna lie, Reed was one of the first people to impress me when I got on campus,” Mitchell said. “He’s young, but I feel like he’s a college player already. He’s intelligent. He knows where to attack. He’s aggressive. He plays defense. He makes shots. He can pass the ball extremely well. …

“Me, personally, nothing surprised me (about his play), because he’s been doing it since I stepped on campus.”

Antonio Reeves is the other 22-year-old on this team filled with freshmen.

“Man, Reed’s been a dog out there. He got that dog mentality,” Reeves said. “He’s out there blocking shots, getting a couple dunks, getting rebounds. He’s doing everything the team needs him to do. And that’s what we’re looking for, and he’s definitely bringing that to the table.”

Calipari, the Hall of Famer with a national title and more than three decades of head coaching experience, said it more succinctly, showering Sheppard with an ultimate compliment.

“He’s a basketball player,” Calipari said.

As in, he knows the game. And he’ll do whatever it takes to help you win.

It’s only been two games, but Sheppard is playing the part so far. To anyone who closely followed his high school career at North Laurel or his AAU run on the Adidas circuit, it shouldn’t be much of a surprise. To everyone else, Sheppard is surely starting to make some new believers.

And after all of the buildup to this moment — Reed Sheppard in a Kentucky basketball uniform, following in the footsteps of his famous parents — he got to live out the beginnings of this lifelong dream with that family cheering section watching over him.

“It means everything,” Sheppard said. “They’re my mom and dad. They’ve been with me for my whole life. They’ve taught me so much. So being able to play for Kentucky and have them in the stands cheering me on and cheering for the team, it’s really, really special.

“And it’s something I’ll never forget.”

GLOBL JAM

Men’s games in the GLOBL JAM, an international basketball showcase in Toronto featuring Kentucky as the USA representative:

Wednesday

United States 81, Germany 73

Canada 88, Africa 62

Thursday

Germany 88, Africa 79

United States 93, Canada 69

Saturday

1:30 p.m.: Africa vs. United States (CBS Sports Network live)

8 p.m.: Germany vs. Canada

Sunday

1:30 p.m.: Bronze medal game: Africa vs. Germany or Canada

8 p.m.: Gold medal game; Kentucky vs. Germany or Canada (CBS Sports Network)

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